Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
Software development methodologies
Videogames are software, of course, and software has proven processes and meth-
odologies that increase the chance of reaching one's goal while minimizing waste.
There are several methodologies to develop a software, each one with its own pros
and cons. Agile software development is a very popular software development meth-
odology among today's game developers, based on an iterative and incremental ap-
proach, where teams periodically examine the short term progresses of their work
and set new short term milestones according to their results. You can find resources
on Agile development at
http://agilemanifesto.org/
.
Discipline
When developing a game, there is never enough time. The iterative nature of the
creative process implies that it is very likely that the project's initial schedule suffers
delays and missed milestones.
It is thus very important that each team member is well organized with his work and
is able to advance his work day by day. This is especially important when dev teams
work remotely, which is often the case with indie projects.
People who have freedom to work on their projects as they please tend to postpone
work for other activities, with the consequence that project deadlines may be delayed
leading into a disaster.
Be sure that the people in the team are reliable and will take their responsibilities
seriously.
Professional training
Whenever possible, look for people who have degrees in their field. There are many
skilled people who are self-taught, and experience is what counts more in the end.
Still, a good formal training helps people learn fast and overcome their limits due to
lack of experience.
A general rule is that, when building up the team, people covering the key roles
should have previous experience working on a project in the same or a similar posi-
